Updates with Trump comment, background

WASHINGTON, Dec 14 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday named ally Devin Nunes, a former U.S. lawmaker who now runs Trump's Truth Social DTJ.O social media platform, to serve as chairman of President's Intelligence Advisory Board.

Nunes, a longtime Trump defender who led the U.S. House of Representatives Intelligence Committee during part of Trump's first White House term, will remain Truth Social CEO while serving on the advisory panel, Trump said in a post on the platform.

As committee chair, Nunes alleged that the FBI had conspired against Trump during its investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential elections in which Trump defeated Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.

"Devin will draw on his experience as former Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, and his key role in exposing the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, to provide me with independent assessments of the effectiveness and propriety of the U.S. Intelligence Community’s activities," Trump wrote.

The President's Intelligence Advisory Board is a White House panel that offers the president independent assessments of intelligence agencies' effectiveness and planning.

Trump on Saturday also named IBM executive and former U.S. Department of Homeland Security official Troy Edgar to serve as the department's deputy secretary, and businessman Bill White to serve as the U.S. ambassador to Belgium.

(Reporting by Susan Heavey and Doug Gillison; Editing by David Gregorio)

((sheavey@thomsonreuters.com; +1-202-898-8300;))